Dance of the Little Old Men–Baile de Viejitos, Oaxaca
After a spectacular week of Semana Santa celebrations in Teotitlan del Valle, the village gathers for yet another tribute. Dance of the Little Old Men, or Baile de Viejitos, begins on the Monday after Easter Sunday and goes for five continuous days. It is an ancient pre-Hispanic Zapotec ritual centered around the way the community […]
Into the Villages on the Oaxaca Coast: Women Who Weave
For me, the most emotional part of our visits to the remote Oaxaca villages along the coast of Oaxaca is to meet the women who weave and hear their stories. Our Oaxaca Coast Textile Study Tour takes us north out of Puerto Escondido along Mexico Highway 200. This region is called the Costa Chica and […]
The Dance of the Feather Begins in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
Today is the official start of Teotitlan del Valle’s Dance of the Feather, or Danza de la Pluma. It is a perfect example of how our village celebrates community with a promise and commitment by young people to their people, their church, their history and their culture. The celebration honors the 16th century church, Templo […]
Send In The Clowns: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Dance of the Feather Distraction?
Who are these clowns? What purpose do they have in the Conquest of Mexico story? The clowns are an ever-present, necessary part of the Dance of the Feather — Danza de la Pluma — story that recreates the Moctezuma-Cortez clash that we know as The Conquest of Mexico. The Dance of the Feather features all […]
Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca: Ancient Tradition of Community-Building–Dance of the Old Men
On the Monday after Easter Sunday each year, a centuries old tradition begins anew and continues for five days, Monday through Friday. It is called the Dance of the Old Men or Baile de los Viejos. Few communities in Mexico still engage in this pre-Hispanic practice. It is alive and well in Teotitlan del Valle, […]
Oaxaca Photography Workshop Tour: Dance of the Feather, Festival & Traditions
Come to Oaxaca, explore indigenous culture, cuisine and traditions, and use your digital SLR camera to capture, record and document it all, including the amazing Dance of the Feather — Danza de la Pluma, This is cultural immersion at its best! July 5-13, 2014 — 8 nights, 9 days The annual Dance of the Feather […]
Guest Blog: Holy Mole by LeeAnn Weigold
Holy Mole: Cooking Class with Reyna Mendoza Ruiz by LeeAnn Weigold* “I’ll stir. You chop,” Susan said. She loves stirring because it’s so relaxing and sensed that in my wired state, I needed some chopping to keep my hands busy. Reyna had persevered with my jumping around like a five year old in the local mercado, asking […]
Danza de la Pluma–Dance of the Feather: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca Pre-Hispanic Tradition
Many people come to Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca to photograph the extraordinary Dance of the Feather. This was how we spent Day 5 of our Market Towns and Artisan Villages Photo Workshop. Los Danzantes — the dancers — make a three-year commitment to recreate the history of the Spanish conquest of Moctezuma and the Aztecs […]
In Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Only Some Call It Carnaval
The Monday after Easter in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico, begins a five-day ritual practice about sustaining community. This is an ancient tradition that pre-dates the Spanish conquest of 1521. Some call it Carnaval (aka Mardi Gras) but it isn’t. It is called Baile de los Viejos or Dance of the Old Men, according to my […]
Southwest Road Trip: Ancestral People of Mesa Verde
We commonly know them as Anasazi, a Navajo name that is interpreted as ancient enemy, considered disrespectful by the 26 tribes who descended from these ancient peoples. This includes the Hopi, the Acoma, the peoples of Taos Pueblo, and all who live along the Little Colorado and Rio Grande rivers. These descendants of the people […]
Oaxaca Screenwriting Workshop for Film + TV: We All Have a Story
Arrive Thursday, March 28 and depart Wednesday, April 3, 2024–Semana Santa Experience What makes a good story? And how do we translate that to a movie or television? We might say: That show has a good story line, or I love those characters (or not), or The plot is unbelievable (as in, either amazing or […]
Reflections: Oaxaca Day of the Dead 2022
The intensity of organizing three Day of the Dead programs — a culture tour, a writing workshop, a folk art tour– in Oaxaca this October and November gave me little time to adequately reflect upon and write about how Day of the Dead is spiritually satisfying, evolving and changing in Oaxaca. Now, back in Northern […]
Gratitude and Introducing Eric Chavez Santiago
Every day that I wake up here on the mesa overlooking the Rio Grande Gorge in Taos, New Mexico, I give thanks. It’s that time of year for giving thanks, for renewal of spirit and reaffirmation of life, for expressing gratitude to family and friends for all they have contributed to my well-being and for […]
Gratitude and Introducing Eric Chavez Santiago
Every day that I wake up here on the mesa overlooking the Rio Grande Gorge in Taos, New Mexico, I give thanks. It’s that time of year for giving thanks, for renewal of spirit and reaffirmation of life, for expressing gratitude to family and friends for all they have contributed to my well-being and for […]
La Malinche: Mexico’s Mestizo Origins
For those who don’t know, La Malinche was the young woman-child and slave sold to Hernan Cortes on the Maya coast of Mexico in 1521. She was traded by the Chontal Maya along with 19 other 12-year olds. Her narrative is complex and formidable. An exhibit at the Albuquerque Museum examines her role as survivor, […]
Un Recuerdo: Weaving and Embroidery on the Oaxaca Coast
I’m looking out of my little rental house at a sea of sagebrush. In the distance are the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, part of the southern Rockies, somewhat obscured by the haze from wildfires. It is supposed to rain tomorrow. Our New Mexico native peoples are doing rain dances. So am I as I wait […]
Gratitude and Giving Thanks: ‘Tis the Season
First, thank you friends and readers for your years of following Oaxaca Cultural Navigator. I’ve been writing this blog since 2007. That’s 14 years reporting about Oaxaca (and Mexico) culture, traditions, textiles and the changes that have taken place over this time. There is a lot in the archives! I also want to thank you […]
Collector’s Textile Sale: Preview 4
It’s been 19 months since I’ve been to my home in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca. In the past several years I’ve been walking, and eating for health (gluten and lactose free). Most of the handwoven clothes I have, mostly from Oaxaca and Chiapas, do not fit! If you wear a size Medium, Large or Extra […]
From My Friend Winn in Oaxaca: Inside and Out
This just came to my inbox. I can alway rely on Winn to report about what it’s like on the ground in Oaxaca. These are extenuating circumstances! I told her, “This is so beautiful. So stunningly clear. So eloquently expressed. I am in awe of your ability to write from your heart to say what […]
Flattening the Curve. Comic Relief. Mexico Next?
Coming to California from Mexico was going to be a family reunion. All that changed in a flash. I arrived at my son’s in Huntington Beach after diligently sanitizing every airplane surface I could touch. My hands are raw from washing and sanitizer. Small sacrifices. Every sniffle and cough is alarming. I’m hoping it’s allergies. […]
Happy New Year 2020 from Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca: Las Cuevitas
In the hills beyond the Oaxaca village of Teotitlan del Valle, there is a sacred Zapotec site. It is said a virgin appeared and whomever comes to the ancient Zapotec grottos to offer tribute and make wishes will be blessed for the coming year. Las Cuevitas means little caves. Beginning on December 31, people of […]
Lila Downs Concert Is Mini-Guelaguetza Extravaganza
How could each Lila Downs Concert be better then those that came before? The Best Ever is what I heard people say who have gone to many in the past. I don’t know, but Lila Downs knows how to dazzle a crowd. The Guelaguetza Stadium on the Cerro Fortin in Oaxaca city was full on […]
Heirloom Beans: Mexico’s Legumes Elevated to a Higher Power
The Hunt for Mexico’s Heirloom Beans, a New Yorker Magazine feature written by Burkhard Bilger and published 4/23/2018, starts and ends with eating. Thanks to my Teotitlan del Valle friend Scott Roth for sending me this article, lengthy but worth the time to read. For northern North Americans unfamiliar with bean culture, we think of this […]
Christmas Posadas in Teotitlan del Valle, Nine Days of Awe
Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico celebrates the winter holiday with a posada on nine nights before Christmas Day, starting on December 15. Starting yesterday afternoon and going into the night, I participated with a small group of visitors from the USA, Canada and Ireland interested in joining me to explore the history, culture and traditions […]
Queen of Mexico: Celebrating the Virgin of Guadalupe in Teotitlan del Valle
The three-day celebration in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico, leading up to December 12 to honor Mexico’s favorite saint, the Virgin of Guadalupe, started on December 10 with a 5 p.m. calenda (procession) that began in the church courtyard. But, I arrived early, at 1 p..m., to find a couple celebrating a wedding in the […]
Adopted Campo Dogs at the Casita, Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico: Where are they now?
This is a five-month saga that began at the end of June 2017, when a homeless field dog gave birth to two puppies in the tall grass behind my casita in Teotitlan del Valle. The pups, both females, were the size of my fist. I’m little. Let me first say: I have never owned a […]
Oaxaca’s Monte Alban Archeological Site Key to Zapotec Civilization
The UNESCO World Heritage archeological site of Monte Alban never ceases to capture and hold my attention. I go there every time I host visitors to Oaxaca and each time there is something new that I notice or an area that is recently restored. The Spanish conquerors named Monte Alban, or white mountain, because the hill […]
Uriel and Rosalia’s Zapotec Wedding, Oaxaca, Mexico
The church wedding is an important part of Zapotec community life. Often, a couple will have a civil marriage ceremony and begin their family as Rosalia and Uriel did three years ago. Their dream will be to save enough to hold a religious service that recognizes their marriage in the eyes of God. Their young children […]
International Priests Visit Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca
The firecrackers call in early afternoon to announce that something spectacular was about to happen in the village later that day. It’s filled with surprises here. My neighbor Ernestina comes over in the morning to offer me 20 fresh, creamy chicken and mole amarillo tamales for 100 pesos. Then, later tamales are served for […]
Oaxaca Guelaguetza 2013: Photographs and Impressions
Guelaguetza on the Hill is a big, professional production. Villages from throughout Oaxaca state are invited to present their unique traditional traje (dress), music and dance traditions which are bound to centuries old cultural customs and conquest history. For textile lovers, it’s a chance to see an array of beautifully woven, embroidered and embellished […]